After the explosion in Rahova, Bolojan sounds the alarm about systems maintenance and the workforce: “Many tragedies can happen” / “Home insurance, a vital element”
Explosion in a block of flats in the Rahova district. Inquam Photos / Tudor Pană
Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan declared, on Thursday, on Antena 3, that Romania has “major deficiencies” in terms of system maintenance and that “the companies that do these works do not have quality employees”, because “we no longer have a professional workforce”.
Talking about the explosion that took place last Friday in a block located on Vicina street no. 1 in the Rahova district of the Capital, the prime minister warned that “one of the minuses we have, this is a very important problem, is system maintenance, maintenance, quality control on time”.
“We have to admit that here we have big deficiencies, both due to the operators in this sector, but especially to the systems inherited from before `89”, continued Ilie Bolojan.
He said there are blocks of flats where “people take strict care of their apartment” but no maintenance is done, for example, on water and gas installations.
“The companies that do these works do not have quality employees. We no longer have a professional workforce, we will have big problems in this area. And then, on this background, many tragedies can happen,” Bolojan added.
“Home insurance is a vital element in any country”
The prime minister explained that there are “things that need changes in mentality, systems, but where we have to make progress every day”.
“And here, apart from putting pressure on companies, on everyone involved, regulatory authorities, local authorities, owners' associations, to comply with these obligations that could certainly avoid some of these tragedies, a very important thing we have is to be aware that home insurance is a vital element in any country”, said Ilie Bolojan.
He gave the example of a colleague of his who has comprehensive home insurance.
“Consider that for years we didn't insure our homes (…). I was talking to a colleague today, who pays for a three-room apartment approximately 35-40 lei per month for full insurance (…), a reasonable amount, and whatever happens – God forbid! – you have an insurance that an insurance company compensates you to a large extent for what you have done. Then, of course, the insurance is mandatory, but which for such cases, such as the one in Rahova, unfortunately, is not active (…). As long as we do not understand that these things must be done on the scale of the entire country, important funds are not formed, not a lot of money is collected for these systems to work”, Ilie Bolojan also declared.
